"Which one you'd use depends on where you're from.
Which one is correct doesn't."
So I assume/hope you will eventually tell us which is correct [or you believe to be correct]?
The word 'color' is derived from Latin, in which they spelled it 'color' not 'colour' so, my vote's for 'color' - adding an extra 'u' just seems unnecessary.
Well, the language is called English, so the version used in England is the correct one. After all, that's where the language originated. I have no idea why Americans saw the need to change all the spellings around; that just seems unnecessary.
Ah, I forgot you were English, not American. But, I must say, you got me intrigued with this question so, I decided to research the matter further. Turns out there is no correct answer, just history:
Noah Webster, well known dictionary writer, was a large supporter of spelling reform who supported restoring words to their "etymologically correct" forms; it was because of him that many words were introduced to the US in new forms. Because Webster wanted words in forms closest to their derivative, many words which were derived from Latin such as color and labor, which had been spelled 'colour' and 'labour' in england, he changed to exclude the 'u' b/c they were derived from "color" and "labor."
It's hard to even compare American English and British English; even the fact that they have different names shows that they are baisically different languages.
Oh, and as for , very nicely planted trap - to chose the one word that both Americans and Britains spell with the 'u.'
I've researched this quite a bit too, because it does interest me.
Though everywhere I look, I seem to find a different story to explain it.
Webster's name does crop up a fair bit, or his Dictionary does, anyway, but I've read stories that blame the typesetters, who were paid by the letter, and who put in as many letters as possible to get paid more in England, but who put in less letters in America to lower their prices to increase the chances of being hired.
I've seen that story a couple of times, and a few other ones, too, which I can't remember.
But the story that seems to be mentioned most is the one that says that the Americans spell words differently just to be un-British, basically. They wanted to sever all ties to Britain, so, to show how different and rebellious and possibly superior they were, they went and spelled words wrong! That sure showed the British what's what!
If Webster was indeed trying to restore words to their etymologically correct forms, then why didn't he change words like 'serene' to 'serenus', 'air' to 'aer', or 'flame' to 'flamma'? Even if he was trying to alter only spelling (keeping pronounciation the same), he should still have changed 'air' to 'aer'.
Maybe he did, though, but it just didn't catch on as well as the others.
I don't believe that just one person and his Dictionary could change the spelling of an entire language, though, just because he wanted to. There must have been some other reason.
Oh, and there's the date thing, too. Why is it that America is the only country in the world that insists on using the completely illogical m/d/y system? It's probably for the same reason, and you can't blame that on a dictionary.
I wouldn't mind so much if Americans at least claimed to speak 'American', but they don't. Usually they claim to speak English, the language of England, and do so incorrectly!
And it annoys me!
Sta.sh
Devious Comments
Which one is correct doesn't."
So I assume/hope you will eventually tell us which is correct [or you believe to be correct]?
The word 'color' is derived from Latin, in which they spelled it 'color' not 'colour' so, my vote's for 'color' - adding an extra 'u' just seems unnecessary.
Which is right, though: glamour or glamor?
Noah Webster, well known dictionary writer, was a large supporter of spelling reform who supported restoring words to their "etymologically correct" forms; it was because of him that many words were introduced to the US in new forms. Because Webster wanted words in forms closest to their derivative, many words which were derived from Latin such as color and labor, which had been spelled 'colour' and 'labour' in england, he changed to exclude the 'u' b/c they were derived from "color" and "labor."
It's hard to even compare American English and British English; even the fact that they have different names shows that they are baisically different languages.
Oh, and as for , very nicely planted trap - to chose the one word that both Americans and Britains spell with the 'u.'
Though everywhere I look, I seem to find a different story to explain it.
Webster's name does crop up a fair bit, or his Dictionary does, anyway, but I've read stories that blame the typesetters, who were paid by the letter, and who put in as many letters as possible to get paid more in England, but who put in less letters in America to lower their prices to increase the chances of being hired.
I've seen that story a couple of times, and a few other ones, too, which I can't remember.
But the story that seems to be mentioned most is the one that says that the Americans spell words differently just to be un-British, basically. They wanted to sever all ties to Britain, so, to show how different and rebellious and possibly superior they were, they went and spelled words wrong! That sure showed the British what's what!
If Webster was indeed trying to restore words to their etymologically correct forms, then why didn't he change words like 'serene' to 'serenus', 'air' to 'aer', or 'flame' to 'flamma'? Even if he was trying to alter only spelling (keeping pronounciation the same), he should still have changed 'air' to 'aer'.
Maybe he did, though, but it just didn't catch on as well as the others.
I don't believe that just one person and his Dictionary could change the spelling of an entire language, though, just because he wanted to. There must have been some other reason.
Oh, and there's the date thing, too. Why is it that America is the only country in the world that insists on using the completely illogical m/d/y system? It's probably for the same reason, and you can't blame that on a dictionary.
I wouldn't mind so much if Americans at least claimed to speak 'American', but they don't. Usually they claim to speak English, the language of England, and do so incorrectly!
And it annoys me!
Which one is correct doesn't.
Uh... yes. I should've said 'which is the correct spelling?'
But I didn't.
I also should have only had two options...